What’s Up With Vagary #7

While the Vagary staff is comprised of a large group of like-minded individuals, that group has an eclectic range of tastes. What’s Up With Vagary is a chance for a selection of our staff to fill you in on what is sucking up the majority of their time during the past week.

Don Parsons – Publisher Relations Liaison and Review Staff

Vampire Diaries started back up this week. This season has been so back and forth. Parts of this episode were good, but it seemed a little too slow for my taste and some scenes dragged on way too long. I’m sure it’s because it had to set the tone after the break, but that doesn’t change the fact that it was a “meh” episode.

Gaming wise I have been busy. I had a few days of playing Plants vs. Zombies on Vita before Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm Generations showed up unannounced. The review will be coming soon so I won’t spoil that, but it is far better than my initial impression (which wasn’t good). Armored Core V also showed up early, but I can’t say much about that until the embargo lifts on Tuesday. It is fast-paced though, when you are actually playing. I tend to spend just as much time customizing my mech as I do fighting, though. It is also really geared towards co-op and competitive multiplayer though, which I haven’t gotten to play any of yet.

William Milby – Podcast Host

If I had to pick a phrase to describe this week, it would be spoiler minefield. You no doubt are aware of Mass Effect 3 and its ensuing controversy. Well, I have been doing my absolute best to avoid information on the game. In fact, I will have to continue to do so for at least another month. To make a long story short, I lost my saves and character for all the Mass Effect games. After going back and forth about whether to just play 3 anyway, I decided that simply would not feel right. So I have started the Mass Effect series over again.

As of this writing I am around 6 hours in, and I could not be happier with my choice. Instead of going back to the 360, I decided to play on my gaming rig PC this go around. I am extraordinarily impressed at how good the game is, I know people dislike the inventory, but besides that, I see no downside. I even like the Mako missions! Expect updates as I replay the series. I also beat Alice: Madness Returns this week, but I’ll save that for another post.

Kyle Baron – Editor in Chief

Warp, a puzzle action game with a cutesy alien creature wouldn’t have done it for me after playing the stellar Journey during a break from Twisted Metal and Starcraft 2. Thankfully, Warp works beyond the “isn’t he cute” trope with a very well handled look at all of the terrible and gruesome things going on in the facility he is captured in. You gain your first and most instrumental power of being able to warp through walls and into objects in the game world, and with all of the terrible crimes they’ve committed, there’s a very primal need for revenge. Revenge happens by way of teleporting into the bodies of your assailants and giving them a very gruesome death involved with and around the often brutally difficult puzzles of Warp. I’ll leave the rest of my assessment for the full review, but feel free to check out the demo on PSN and XBLA until then.

So that is what we have been up to, what about you? Fill us in by dropping us a comment.